Issue - meetings

To consider how the Housing Landlord Service is performing against key statutory compliance measures (report of the Assistant Director - Housing enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Assistant Director – Housing which asked members to consider how the Housing Landlord Service was performing against key statutory compliance measures.

The Housing Property and Repairs Manager, the Assistant Director – Housing and the Portfolio Holder for Strategic and Operational Housing were in attendance for this item.

In addition, two representatives from the Regulator of Social Housing, Rachael Walsh and James Brookfield, observed the item via Teams.

The Housing Property and Repairs Manager introduced the report which included details relating to the following points:

• Background to the report; the report solely focussed on the relevant statutory compliance relating to the Housing Landlord Service.
• Key compliance measures;
• Annual reporting on compliance performance;
• Compliance position as of 31 January 2025;
• Asbestos management (communal areas);
• Gas safety;
• Legionella safety (communal areas);
• Electrical safety; a further five properties had received electrical safety checks since the report had been published with no changes to the reported remedial actions;
• Fire safety (communal areas);
• Passenger lift safety checks (communal areas);
• Damp, condensation and mould (DCM);
• Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC);
• Servicing of off-gas heating systems;
• Quality assurance; and
• Keeping tenants informed.

Increased transparency and scrutiny of the Housing Landlord Service was underway, and as part of this, members would receive a Tenant Satisfaction report in May 2025 and compliance data, including remedial actions, on a six-monthly basis.

Members considered the report and made the following comments:

• Members noted that gas safety checks were undertaken annually and queried why electrical safety checks were only undertaken on a five-yearly basis.
  • The Housing Property and Repairs Manager responded that council properties were subject to a five-year periodical electrical safety check. In addition, a landlord safety check was carried out when there was a change of tenancy.

• Members queried how long the legionella safety checks had been overdue.
  • The Housing Property and Repairs Manager responded that the legionella assessment had identified three actions in September 2024. These had related to issues regarding ‘access’, specifically lighting and boardwalk in attic spaces and heavy loft hatches. A remedial action was incorporated into, and therefore awaited, the undertaking of major capital works.

• Members queried the reason for the 26 overdue electrical safety checks.
  • The Housing Property and Repairs Manager responded that all overdue cases had resulted from access issues. The team worked closely with the tenant and estate management team to secure access to carry out required tasks, with an injunction being pursued as a last resort. All overdue cases were at a certain point within the process to obtain access.

• Members requested information regarding the Housing Compliance Clinic.
  • The Housing Property and Repairs Manager responded that, the Housing Compliance Clinic, which comprised relevant senior managers including the Assistant Director for Housing and the Portfolio Holder, met monthly to scrutinise the performance metrics which were included within the report.

• Members referred to point 11.4 of the report which stated that the management of DCM was ‘a complex challenge for the service’ and responded that the council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 70

To provide assurance to Cabinet on the Housing Landlord Service’s performance against key statutory compliance measures(report of Assistant Director – Housing enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Assistant Director – Housing which provided assurance to Cabinet on the Housing Landlord Service’s performance against key statutory compliance measures.

The Portfolio Holder – Strategic and Operational Housing presented the report, which provided a comprehensive overview of performance against key statutory compliance measures. The report aimed to assure the Cabinet that compliance arrangements were robust and continuously improving.

The report covered various statutory safety requirements. As of 31 January 2025, officers had completed 100% of safety checks in several critical areas, including asbestos, gas, legionella, lifts, and fire. Additionally, 99.25% of electrical safety checks had been completed, with access issues being escalated. This data and progress on remedial actions was scrutinised on a monthly basis at the Housing Compliance Clinic, with high level data presented quarterly to the Performance Monitoring Panel.

Over the past 12 months, officers had made significant efforts to improve the handling of reports of damp and mould. A new policy was adopted in May 2024, departmental training was delivered, and a dedicated Damp and Mould Co-ordinator role was established. However, damp continued to place pressures on the service, a situation that has been further highlighted by the initial stock condition survey findings. Consequently, a further review of the damp policy and performance measures was currently being conducted and was due to be presented to members in the first quarter of 2025/2026.

In January 2025, the Governance and Audit Committee received a reasonable assurance opinion on housing compliance, stating robust controls and oversight were evidenced and continued to be developed. However, there was always more that could be done and it was important to continue to extend oversight and assurance in this area, particularly focussing on remedial actions and service improvements which would be shared with the Performance Monitoring Panel.

Members considered the report and the following issues were raised:

·       Decisions were based on data – how confident was the Portfolio Holder that the data upon which decisions were made was reliable?

·       How were tenants informed of the safety of their homes?